Atlas (A Selection/Hat Films Fanfiction)

~ Thirty Four ~

I turned the bracelet around in my hand, following the flow of the metal with my thumb as Luna worked on my hair. We had pulled out Ross's gift and put it on a display stand, so it was waiting for me once I was finished with everything else. I knew I couldn't wear the bracelet, but I thought about keeping it on me, so I could have the imaginary support.

"Are you wearing that one too?" Luna asked, looking over my shoulder with a chunk of hair and a curling iron in her hands. They were so talented; my hair was always perfect, and this time wasn't an exception. It already felt odd to wear such fine jewelry to a ceremony convicting criminals to jail or whipping, so my maids had decided on a loose bun that kept the hair out of my face and away from my neck. Still, Luna's casual bun still looked immaculate and skilled.

Ross's gift had changed our outfit plans, but the dress was grey, so we were able to just add green accents to match it beautifully with the jewelry. We wanted me to look sophisticated, which meant removing a lot of the traditional female elements and fitting in inspiration from the army. It was short sleeved Poplin fabric dress, normally a fabric reserved for class A, non-combat uniforms, and it had a small, decorative open collar that exposed my upper chest to frame Ross's necklace. Double breasted buttons formed lines down the bodice and ended in a belt, where the skirt pleating started and ran all the way down to my ankles. We went as subtle as we could, so it was still a ballgown with an hourglass shape and fit me snuggly.

"No," I sighed, "I'll just keep it on me. . . hey, do you think you could add a chain to this so it would fit as an anklet?"

I handed it to her, and she examined it closely. "Atlas, this is gorgeous," she muttered, "where did you get this?"

"It was a gift," I said simply.

"From Prince Ross?" she asked, not waiting for an answer as she called, "Gemma, could you do something for me?"

"Um, no," I answered quietly, "from a friend."

Luna handed her the bracelet and reminded her that there were extra chains in the third drawer down in the storage to the right of the closet door. How they kept track of everything in there, I'll never know.

"Do you know what Chrysocolla represents?" I asked casually as Hannah came over to continue my makeup. I wanted to know if it meant

Hannah's brow furrowed in concentration. "Chrysocolla? That's a copper rock," she commented, "I think it's just general wisdom and connection and stuff like that. All the stones have pretty similar meanings."

"It stands for gentle power," Luna added, "I only know what it is because of that. Isn't that pretty? I like that phrase a lot."

"I guess if you like oxymorons," Hannah mumbled.

"Are these Chrysocolla? Who would use that in jewelry?" Gemma asked, studying it closer before returning the bracelet to me with a chain extension attached to it. I didn't answer her, hoping it was rhetorical.

I folded over in my chair, making Luna click her tongue as I pulled a section of my hair out of her grasp. Closing the hook of the new anklet, I shook my foot once to make sure it wouldn't fall off before sitting back up. I felt grounded, even with just the slight weight that it carried, and I worked on calming my nerves.

The Convicting was a ceremony that Elites had to go through where they publicly, and in front of the royal family, convicted petty criminals to jail instead of a whipping. It was supposed to be easy, but I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that told me it would be anything but.

The final touch to my outfit was Ross's gifts, which Hannah ceremoniously placed the necklace gently on my chest and Gemma and Luna both took an earring each. They cooed about how it looked, but it didn't carry the same feeling as the anklet, and I couldn't share in their excitement. I felt ungrateful and guilty that such a beautiful gift didn't stir my feelings like the bracelet did.